Jewels From The Archive - 57 Years Ago

For many of us gearheads all things "old" fascinate us, besides just our "old" cars. A perfect example is architecture. A lot of these "old things" go perfectly together because after all, they are all "old". The shot on this spread encompasses that statement. A time capsule of cool showcasing Dick Bennett's bitchin 1927 T roadster pickup in front of a state-of-the-art, atomic-styled house, all perfectly composed by Mr. Rickman.

This photo is a slice of life that looks as if it was art directed by the photographer to imitate a Keith Weesner painting of today. Of course it wasn't, it's a "real" moment in history captured on film. Although the little T would have been outdated as an old stocker, by 1957 it had been turned into a state-of-the-art hot rod. Take note of all the details of the hot rod and this state-of-the-art 1950s "modern" atomic-styled house, which provides a beautiful background!

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Dick Bennett's Inglewood, CA–based hot rod ran a full-race 1956 Chevy mill, Offy Tri-power manifold, Corvette ignition, and Hedman hedders. The 1927 body is mated to a Deuce frame and the Deuce grille shell has been sectioned and filled. How about all that chrome, including the 1940 Ford rearend? The interior features white leather upholstery while the exterior was squirted in jet-black lacquer. Fenders weren't just for looks back then, but required by California at the time for all cars weighing over 1,500 pounds. In reality, that law was just one of many that targeted hot rods in an effort to keep them off the road, as they were deemed unsafe by lawmakers at the time. All photos by Eric Rickman/Petersen Archive.